So, we're stuck on this... Water World?WHAT DOES THAT EVEN MEAN?!?!?!?!?Aren't we human?WHY ARE WE HERE??!?!?!?We need to build... a What? WHAT IN THIS WATERY WORLD IS THE APPARATUS?!?!?!? WHY DOE IT NEED NEPTUNIUM?!?!?

These are the driving questions I asked myself, and no doubt many of you have. I have no definitive proof of what I am saying, but it is the clearest inference in my mind.

To address the water world and the human point: These people are definitely human, every specialist picture shows that. Also, the humans are living in outposts under water. Humans do not have the capability to create outposts on the planet while on the planet. This is where the 'Covered Earth Theory' falls short. These humans came from Earth TO here, and established outposts underwater for a reason. I believe it was because of some great war on earth, where a few allied factions decide to take final refuge on a watery, yet hospitable planet. It is safe to say that 'The Apparatus' was used on earth, and was a super weapon of sorts. These allied factions had to stay on the watery world (I will dub it "Neptunia"). I can infer the apparatus is a super weapon by a reddit post, which the question of what the apparatus was came into play. A Developer of the game, Ron, replied with, and I quote, a cycle as to the game's ACTUALLY STORY, "It's a world trapped in an endless cycle of destruction that goes something like this:1. plans for an ancient technological device are discovered2. nations race to be the first to build this device (the apparatus, which requires 200 neptunium)3. when a player "wins" a game, the apparatus destroys nearly all life on the planet, leaving the outposts intact.4. societies rebuild themselves from near annihilation over many generations.5. go back to 1."Now the true question of subterfuge is not what the apparatus is, the question is what the people of neptunia think it is. They wouldn’t really be warring the whole time they were there, and only started when the apparatus plans were discovered. I feel like the top scientists of the day in subterfuge would know if it was a super weapon or not, and making it would be bad for diplomacy. The only thing I can believe the factions of subterfuge would war over this apparatus is simple: The apparatus can get the faction off the planet

Now the next logical question to ask would be why the apparatus kills almost all life on the planet, to which I have a futuristic reply: The apparatus gather biofuel for the spaceship. On a watery world, any method of fuel acq uisition is going to be long and painful. The apparatus can solve two problems at once, killing all of one’s enemies, and running for safe haven. The reason they are fighting so ruthlessly is because they don’t want to be the ones dying, and especially want to get off Neptunia.

interesting theory, i thought two posible theory before reading thispost. one of them is very similar to yours, but the other its a little more diferent: these "colors" are private enterprices (in other planet) wich objetive its to show planet earth that they are more capable than the oher enterprices to drill neptunium , wich is the principal energy source in the future.

Perhaps it takes place on Earth after continued global warming has melted all the ice caps flooding all of the land masses. The few remaining surviving international superpowers are now confined to these underwater outposts but food, drinking water, electricity, and oxygen are all scarce resources and quickly depleting. Desperate to get off of the planet that’s no longer hospitable, these nations race to launch a rocket. The Earth has been tapped of fossil fuels for decades. However scientists have found a finite supply of Neptunium which they could use to fuel a rocket. 200 kilotons is need to fuel the one rocket created to convert the Neptunium to energy powering the launch thus ending the game.

I support the idea that the neptunium is used to fuel a spaceship. Neptunium is used as a precursor for the formation of plutonium-238, used in radioisotope thermal generators to provide electricity for spacecraft. The concept of the apparatus being a super weapon is also reasonable, because it could potentially be a nuclear weapon. Neptunium is also a by-product of nuclear power reactors. Maybe this actually is taking place on Earth in the future after nuclear fallout. This is a very interesting topic, I plan on looking into a few more things: 1.Many outposts represent actual places on earth and their orientation. 2.Theories on uses of neptunium as well as possible flooded earth theories. 3.Anymore details released by the developers on the story.This is an exciting topic.